Both T-Mobile and AT&T plan to soon launch their first devices running RedCap, a 5G specification designed for Internet of Things devices. according Fierce Wireless.
What is RedCap? Great question! Also called “reduced capacity” or NR-Light, RedCap is a low-bandwidth version of 5G that is expected to make certain devices, such as wearables, sensors or surveillance cameras, simpler and more energy efficient, according to a study. oracle document. That could mean cell-connected smartwatches, XR glasses or other cheaper wearable products that don’t need high-powered antennas and fast performance that last longer on a charge.
AT&T, which began testing the specification on its own network earlier this year, plans to launch its first NR-Light devices in 2025. Fierce Wireless writes. T-Mobile will launch one of its own before the end of this year.
It’s unclear what those devices will be, but Jason Silkes, executive vice president of device architecture at AT&T, has hinted at what the first NR-Light products could look like. narration Fierce in june that the first RedCap devices will likely be cheap mobile hotspots and dongles. In fact, TCL announced a 5G USB dongle last week, conspicuously called the TCL Linkport IK511.
First products could use a Qualcomm modem chipset released last year called Snapdragon X35. In its announcement it listed several companies, including T-Mobile and AT&T, that plan to use the modem in future products. Maybe we’ll hear more during CES early next year. Let the (slow) race towards 5G begin.